Why American churchgoers like to shop around. - By Andrew Santella - Slate Magazine

Why American churchgoers like to shop around. - By Andrew Santella - Slate Magazine:

"Since before Election Day, Washington pastors have been lining up to invite the first family into their flock, and outlets from PBS to the Wall Street Journal have taken their turn handicapping the many contending congregations. Despite all of this cajoling, the White House announced that the Obama family is still shopping for a church in Washington.

Except for the special invitations and the presidential-scale press coverage, the Obamas' church search puts them in a situation a lot of American believers are well-acquainted with. One in seven adults changes churches each year, and another one in six attends a handful of churches on a rotating basis, according to the Barna Group, a marketing research firm that serves churches. Church shopping isn't a matter of merely changing congregations: A survey by the Pew Forum on Religious and Public Life last year indicated that 44 percent of American adults have left their first religious affiliation for another. 'Constant movement characterizes the American religious marketplace,' a survey summary said. ..."

Very interesting...

I tend to get a little nervous when I hear the language of marketing used to describe the preaching of the Gospel, but on the other hand why should people attend church where their needs aren't being met?

Andrew Santella points out that when the church was disestablished, it fell to the preachers to recruit and retain parishioners (and to get them to give generously). This may be part of the equation, but my feeling is that a healthy congregation equips all its members to perform such functions, not just the minister or elders or deacons. In fact, a congregation that is held together by the personality and preaching of one pastor is in danger of collapsing when the pastor moves on.

Much of what defines a church happens at times other than the worship hour. Sunday school, fellowship groups, Bible studies, prayer groups, potluck dinners, retreats, visiting the sick, and so on are not, nor should they be, the sole job of the minister.

A large congregation does not necessarily mean a healthy congregation, nor does a small congregation necessarily mean one that is slowly dying. The pitfall in thinking of the Church as a consumer product is that we easily forget why we are called together in the first place -- to worship, fellowship, and serve others. Or in the words of the PC(USA) Book of Order (G-1.0200): "The great ends of the church are the proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humankind; the shelter, nurture, and spiritual fellowship of the children of God; the maintenance of divine worship; the preservation of the truth; the promotion of social righteousness; and the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world".

Presbyterian Outlook: Younger elders

Younger elders:

"... Why not ask every presbytery to elect one commissioner under the age of 27? Such a commissioner would have been nominated and elected by his/her own congregation and entrusted with leadership in that particular church. He would have been examined by the Session and been ordained into office. She would have voted on church school curriculum, on receiving members, and sorting through the costs of building maintenance. After serving at the GA, this young adult commissioner would give an account to that same local body of leaders. ..."

The Book of Order (G-14.0221) provides that: "... Every congregation shall elect men and women from among its active members, giving fair representation to persons of all ages and of all racial ethnic backgrounds and to persons with disabilities who are members of that congregation, to the office of elder and to the office of deacon (if used in the congregation). ..."

Many congregations, including the one where I worship, elect a high school student for a one year term on Session. This allows them an opportunity to be a part of church leadership without burdening them with a three-year commitment. The idea of ordaining youth and young adults has been around for some time. I was ordained an elder at the age of 21 in the United Presbyterian Church in the USA, and there was at least one congregation that had ordained a high school student in my presbytery. My son, who is a sophomore in high school, began a one year term on Session in early January, so he too is getting a taste of Church leadership.

One of my minor peeves is the way people tend to label them as "youth elders". There is no such office in the PC(USA). These young adults when elected, ordained, and installed to active service on a Session are elders on the same level as any who serve in a like capacity. And, like any other elder, they are elders for life.

There is not complete agreement as to whether this is a good idea or not. One substantive difficulty some have is whether a young person is ready to take on the role of spiritual leader. I have to admit that when I was ordained an elder at age 21, I was not ready to be a spiritual leader. But I had to come to grips with the concept and thus I began a process of self-examination, prayer, study, and service. Now I am of an age where I am an "elder" in the chronological sense, I have presbyopia. and my hair and beard are grey -- I am truly a presbyter. And I still know that even though I am better equipped spiritually than I was 35 years ago, I still am striving to be worthy of the calling of elder. My son is now finding his own way, and I wish him the best.

Jack Haberer's suggestion for each presbytery to send an elder under 27 to General Assembly seems to me to be a solution looking for a problem. There is currently no bar to younger elders serving as GA commissioners, and while I have no idea how many such there are, I suspect there are some commissioners each year who would also qualify as a Youth Advisory Delegate.

I can understand the issues with YADs, but they do have voice and vote in the committees, and often hold the balance of power when the issues are closely divided. Many observers have felt that as a group they are vulnerable to manipulation by special interest groups. There is no question that they are a heavily-lobbied group at General Assembly. But I am not convinced that eliminating the YADs and requiring that each presbytery send one commissioner from that age group is a viable solution. I assume that this would entail significantly increasing the number of commissioners -- otherwise smaller presbyteries would be locked into sending one minister and one youth to represent the presbytery.

One factor that complicates things was our move to biennial General Assemblies. While it was, in general, a good idea, it made it even less likely that any given Presbyterian elder would have the opportunity to serve as a GA commissioner. Short of doubling the number of commissioners, it is hard to see that situation improving. Increasing the number of commissioners could also have the effect of erasing the savings resulting from the move to biennial assemblies.

I see no reason why a younger elder should not serve as a commissioner to General Assembly, but making it a mandate would create problems of its own.

For a thought-provoking essay on how the PC(USA) might go about rebuilding itself, including dealing with the issue of youth representation, check out Beau Weston's Rebuilding the Presbyterian Establishment, which is made available through the Office of Theology and Worship of the PC(USA). Beau and I see things in a similar way, though I differ with him in some details of youth involvement.

You've Got Jail | Christianity Today

You've Got Jail | Christianity Today:

"Longtime missionaries David and Fiona Fulton were sentenced by a Gambian court to a year of hard labor last December after pleading guilty — in hopes of a lenient sentence — to sedition charges stemming from a wry comment e-mailed to a prayer list. ..."

When you read further in this article, you find that Mr Fulton did say something questionable, but in its full context it is obvious that he was not advocating violence -- quite the contrary. But this does raise an important issue when it comes to emails and newsletters from the mission field. First of all, circumspection is called for, especially when dealing with the frustrations of seeing mindless sectarian violence all around you. And secondly, one of the recipients for reasons that are not particularly obvious decided to forward to message to Gambian authorities. I try to assume positive motives, but is it difficult in this case.

Messages from missionaries, especially in sensitive parts of the world, need to be kept confidential and not posted on websites, forwarded outside the original distribution list, and certainly not sent to a government not known for due process or humane prison conditions.

Prayers are needed for the Fultons and for those who have imprisoned them

Universal cellphone charger will ring the changes, say makers - CNN.com

Universal cellphone charger will ring the changes, say makers - CNN.com:

"BARCELONA, Spain (CNN) -- Cell phone makers Tuesday pledged to end one of modern life's chief frustrations --- and introduce a universal charger for handsets by 2012."

This is something that has been a pet peeve of mine, and I'm glad to see the industry take steps to mitigate it.

A Valentine

John Anderson, My Jo
Robert Burns, 1789

John Anderson, my jo, John,
When we were first acquaint,
Your locks were like the raven,
Your bonnie brow was brent;
But now your brow is beld, John,
Your locks are like the snaw;
But blessings on your frosty pow,
John Anderson, my jo.

John Anderson, my jo, John,
We clamb the hill thegither,
And mony a canty day, John,
We've had wi' ane anither;
Now we maun totter down, John,
But hand in hand we'll go.
And we'll sleep thegither at the foot,
John Anderson, my jo.

I enjoy reading Robert Burns from time to time, and this is one of the poems that has a whole new meaning as I get older. Did I mention that in four days my wife will have one of those "milestone" birthdays? She and I "clamb the hill thegither" for close to 28 years already, but we're not quite ready to "totter down". And we still enjoy "mony a canty day".

There are at least two versions of John Anderson, My Jo, a longer version (not written by Burns) from about 1744 and this shorter (and more suitable for a family blog) version from 1789. The 1789 version was written by Robert Burns. You can see both versions by following the link in the previous sentence.

Anyway, happy Valentine's Day, Susan!

And Happy Valentine's Day to all of you who love and are loved.

AP News | The Columbia Daily Tribune

AP News | The Columbia Daily Tribune:

"WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (AP) -- For years, the juvenile court system in Wilkes-Barre operated like a conveyor belt: Youngsters were brought before judges without a lawyer, given hearings that lasted only a minute or two, and then sent off to juvenile prison for months for minor offenses.

The explanation, prosecutors say, was corruption on the bench.

In one of the most shocking cases of courtroom graft on record, two Pennsylvania judges have been charged with taking millions of dollars in kickbacks to send teenagers to two privately run youth detention centers. ..."

This was not a case of judges meting out harsh justice. It was nothing more than greed and kickbacks from two privately-run juvenile detention facilities, which received fees based on the numbers of incarcerated juveniles. One victim of this corruption was sentenced to three months for lampooning an assistant principal on her MySpace account.

According to this article, the two former judges made a plea bargain that calls for more than seven years behind bars. That seems a little lenient considering the nature of the crime.

Scout Sunday 2009

Yesterday was Scout Sunday, generally observed on the Sunday closest to February 8th, which is the anniversary of the founding of the Boy Scouts of America. This year Scout Sunday fell on the day of the actual 99th anniversary of the BSA.

Three of our troop members, who are also members of the congregation, acted as the worship leaders. They did a great job, reading clearly and with feeling. Having the boys help out with the service is a long-standing tradition in our congregation and troop, and is even more meaningful when the boys are also active participants in the work and worship of our congregation. Just a bit of historical perspective -- when Troop 4 was chartered in 1963, the core leadership and boys came from the congregation itself, since this was a young congregation with many youth. Over the years as the congregation aged, the proportion of congregation members in the troop fell and occasionally stood at zero boys and only a few adults. This trend seems to be reversing with an influx of young families, and we hope that there will always be Trinity youth involved with the troop.

This 99th anniversary of Scouting in the USA was also special for the Reformed Angler family. Sunday morning my son was recognized for his completion of the requirements for the God and Life award (part of the God and Country series). This represented several months of delving deeply into Scripture, discussions with the pastor, and putting what he learned into action. Susan and I were definitely proud parents. The image to the left is Liam and his pastor.

The evening before was the annual District Dinner, honoring volunteers for their service. It culminates in the awarding of the District Awards of Merit (based on the size of the district). This year I was recognized for my service to Scouting and the district. I had no inkling that this was coming, but is is sure nice to be recognized.

Next year will be the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scout of America and there will be many different ways in which the BSA celebrates its heritage and service to the youth of America. It will also represent the 50th anniversary since the day in 1960 when I put on my first Cub Scout uniform and started my own involvement with the Boy Scouts of America.

The Associated Press: Fuller, co-founder of Habitat for Humanity, dies

The Associated Press: Fuller, co-founder of Habitat for Humanity, dies:

"ATLANTA (AP) — Millard Fuller, the millionaire entrepreneur who gave it all away to help found the Christian house-building charity Habitat for Humanity, died Tuesday. He was 74. ..."

The loss of Millard Fuller will be keenly felt, not just by the Habitat for Humanity organization but by the countless people he touched in various ways -- families who experienced home ownership for the first time as well as volunteers who learned not only how to hammer nails but what it means to serve.

Austin road sign warns motorists of zombies | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News

Austin road sign warns motorists of zombies | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News:

"An Austin road sign meant to warn motorists about road conditions instead read: 'The end is near! Caution! Zombies ahead!'"

Some people have too much time on their hands.

Of course, this is a caution to (1) secure the input; and (2) change the default password, which is apparently well-known.

You There -- Out of the Jury Pool!

This week was my term of service on the circuit jury for my county. The last time I was liable for service I ended up serving on a jury -- two days of a trial for sexual abuse of a minor.

This time when I called in on Monday, jurors 1-152 were told to appear the next morning for jury duty. This seemed like an pretty high number just to get 12 jurors qualified. I went in, and it was pretty much "hurry up and wait". Well after the time that things should have been underway there seemed to be a flurry of activity in one of the side rooms, and after a while the presiding judge came out and addressed the jury pool with "good news and bad news".

The good news was that we would be going home for the day since the prosecutor had dropped the charges and would be refiling them probably within the day. In any case, this would no longer involve us. The judge then left without delivering the bad news.

The bailiff was able to get everyone's attention as they were putting on their coats and chattering away, and it fell to him to inform us that we still needed to call in every evening for the remainder of the week. That turned out to be good news in disguise, since no other jury trials were scheduled for this week.

So what was this all about? I read the local afternoon paper later Tuesday and learned that this was to have been a first degree murder trial resulting from a shooting that occurred in the past couple years. The judge in this case had ruled that the defense could raise issues related to a Missouri law that allows deadly force when there is a danger to one's own life or the lives of others. (This is a fairly recent law that makes it a little easier for such people as battered spouses or other abuse victims to take action when they feel immediately threatened. My personal take on self defense or defense of others is that my threshold for acting is set significantly higher than what the law apparently permits. )

So I breathed a sigh of relief. It is doubtful I would have been selected for this particular jury for a few reasons. First, the defense would probably not have wanted me since I spent three years as a reserve police officer in Colorado. The prosecution would have probably dismissed me since I am one of those knuckle-dragging neanderthals who believe the Second Amendment to the US Constitution can be understood in plain English to guarantee an individual right to keep and bear arms. I don't know whether this was to have been a death penalty case, but I am opposed on moral grounds to the death penalty, so that too would have disqualified me.

Having said all this, had the trial proceeded, and I were picked a a juror, I would have listened to both the prosecution and defence as they laid our their respective cases and I would have followed the instructions of the judge in my delberations and done my utmost to render a fair verdict. I'm just glad I didn't have to serve this time.

RNS Feature: "200 years later, Lincoln’s faith remains an enigma"

RNS Feature: "200 years later, Lincoln’s faith remains an enigma":

"WASHINGTON—Seven score and four years ago, Abraham Lincoln stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol and said North and South alike must suffer for the sin of slavery.

“If God wills that (the war) continue until ... every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, so it still must be said `the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether,”’ Lincoln said in his second inaugural address, quoting the Psalms.

Called “Lincoln’s Sermon on the Mount,” his 1865 address has been deemed the most religiously sophisticated presidential speech in American history. It was delivered by a backwoods lawyer with just one year of formal schooling who never joined a church. ..."

This is not really new to people who have read history, although it is a fact that when Lincoln attended services, it was often in a Presbyterian congregation.

As far as Abraham Lincoln's theology was concerned, there is little to quibble as far as it went. His understanding about God's will and how it is distinct from human will remains a model for us today. The excerpt I quoted above does not do Lincoln justice, so I recommend you read his full Second Inaugural Address. It isn't long, and his exposition on Divine Will is in the third of the four paragraphs.

When Licoln delivered this speech on March 4, 1865, he had only about a month left to live, and the Civil War was winding down. The final thoughts in his address outlined his intention to see the nation's wounds bound up and start the healing process. His assassination left a void that was filled with people who were not as concerned with healing as much as with retribution. This is one of the great "what ifs" of history.

Happy Birthday Robert Burns

Robert Burns (1759-1796) was born 260 years ago today. The Bard, as he is known in Scotland, wrote much poetry in the Scots language or in the Scots dialect of English, as well as some essays in standard English. He is perhaps best known for such poems as Scots Wha Hae and Auld Lang Syne.

His birthday is celebrated in many places where Scots and descendants of Scots live and its accompanying ritual sounds intriguing. The Burns Night menu consists of many traditional dishes of Scotland, the centerpiece of which is haggis.

After opening remarks, the Selkirk Grace is said:

Some hae meat and canna eat,
And some wad eat that want it;
But we hae meat and we can eat,
And sae the Lord be thanket

.Following this, the haggis is brought in and the poem To A Haggis is recited:

Fair fa’ your honest, sonsie face,

Great chieftain o’ the pudding-race!
Aboon them a’ ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy o’ a grace
As lang’s my arm.

The groaning trencher there ye fill,
Your hurdies like a distant hill,
Your pin wad help to mend a mill
In time o’ need,
While thro’ your pores the dews distil
Like amber bead.

His knife see rustic-labour dight,
An’ cut you up wi’ ready slight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright
Like onie ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
Warm-reekin, rich!

Then horn for horn they stretch an’ strive,
Deil tak the hindmost, on they drive,
’Till a’ their weel-swall’d kytes belyve
Are bent like drums;
Then auld Guidman, maist like to rive,
Bethankit hums.

Is there that o’er his French ragout,
Or olio that wad staw a sow,
Or fricassee wad mak her spew
Wi’ perfect sconner,
Looks down wi’ sneering, scornfu’ view
On sic a dinner?

Poor devil! see him owre his trash,
As feckless as a wither’d rash,
His spindle shank a guid whip-lash,
His nieve a nit;
Thro’ bloody flood or field to dash,
O how unfit!

But mark the rustic, haggis-fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread,
Clap in his walie nieve a blade,
He’ll mak it whissle;
An’ legs, an’ arms, an’ heads will sned,
Like taps o’ thrissle.

Ye pow’rs wha mak mankind your care,
And dish them out their bill o’ fare,
Auld Scotland wants nae stinking ware
That jaups in luggies;
But, if ye wish her gratefu’ pray’r,
Gie her a Haggis!

The beverage of choice seems to be whiskey, no doubt a single-malt scotch. There are toasts to the women by the men, to the men by the women, to the sovereign, to Robert Burns' memory and as many others as needed to deplete the store of beverage.

I've eaten haggis before at the Highland Games in Denver, Colorado. It is actually quite tasty. Now if I could only find a source for sheep stomachs and a few other pieces-parts...

The text of the poems quoted here are taken from The Complete Works of Robert Burns, courtesy of The Gutenberg Project.

Does This Seem A Little Odd?

Apparently a bill was introduced in Congress to repeal the 22nd Amendment, which limits the number of terms a president can serve:

House Joint Resolution 5 was introduced on January 6, 2009.

This speaks for itself; I have no further comments.

OK. I lied. Here is a comment: An anonymous commenter pointed out that Jose Serrano (D-NY) started proposing the repeal of the 22nd Amendment 12 years ago during the Clinton Administration, and continued it through the Bush Administration, and now has started off the Obama Administration with his biennial attempt to do away with term limitations on the presidency. I checked this out on a variety of independent sites and it all checks out.

Personally, I can't think of many presidents during my lifetime who were so indispensable to the Republic that they deserved a second term, let alone more than two terms. Fortunately the bar to amend the Constitution is quite high -- 2/3 majority in both houses and ratification by 3/4 of the states. (US Constitution, Article V)

Update on The Cyber Hymnal

The Cyber Hymnal, which has been having problems with the hijacking of its old domain name, is back up in a new location. If this is a resource that you have grown to love and depend on, then go ahead and change your bookmarks and links.

I'm guessing that the domain name registration expired and before the good folks at The Cyber Hymnal could get the name re-registered, someone snapped it up and it now seems to be an advertising vehicle.

Candidate Care

I spent the morning and part of Wednesday afternoon at the meeting of our presbytery's Committee on Preparation -- not on my behalf, but rather on behalf of two members of our congregation who are candidates. One is certified as being ready for a call and the other can be certified as soon as she decides that the needs of her family can be balanced with the requirements of seeking a call. Having seen these two candidates pass through adolescence and young adulthood, I am thrilled at the prospect of seeing one or both of them ordained. They are both products of Princeton Theological Seminary and have clear gifts in ministry and a strong sense of their calling.

Since the inquirers and candidates were not present, the committee and the session liaisons were able to discuss a wide range of issues concerning the process, including the bumpy road that many candidates take along their way to clarifying their sense of calling.

One fact in our presbytery is that nearly all inquirers pass to the candidate phase, which concerns many on the committee. This arises from a pragmatic assumption that a certain percentage of people who think ministry is where they'd like to be will eventually decide that that is not where they want to be. There are statistics that suggest that many such decisions are made following ordination and a few years of ministry. Many feel that it would be better to "change majors" while in the inquirer phase, rather than as a minister of only a few years experience. One solution seems to have been to make entry to the inquirer stage more rigorous. To my lay point of view, this seems to go against the whole idea of "inquiry". Here is where they begin the process and start learning what ministry of Word and Sacrament is all about. The trend in thinking in our local CPM is to make sure that inquirers understand that moving to candidacy is not a guarantee. It is a decision mutually arrived at by the inquirer and the committee, and that there is no stigma attached to deciding that God is calling one to different service. This makes more sense to me than to administer a rigorous examination at the outset.

Other issues revolve around the heavy financial burden borne by the seminary student. Many candidates go into their first call with upwards of $30,000 in debt and little prospect of paying off quickly unless they can find themselves in a more affluent congregation. The small, often rural congregations find it difficult to call full-time ministers, and when they can do so, are not able to pay much more than a basic living wage. I understand there are programs in some presbyteries whereby those who serve in one of the "wee kirks" can have a portion of their indebtedness forgiven, but such programs generally require that they have attended a PC(USA) seminary.

This was a long-overdue meeting, and I certainly appreciated the information we received regarding our duties. It turns out that I am a little unusual, since I was appointed session liaison for one of our candidates while I was between active service on session, and remained liaison during a term of active service and now am not on active service. Other congregations tend to rotate the liaisons as they rotate on or off session or the candidate care committee. Personally, I think that the continuity is beneficial, and I am more than happy to continue in this service.

On another topic, somewhat related, I have just begun a three year stint on the presbytery Commissioned Lay Pastor committee, so I will get a bit of a different perspective on the various issues related to how people answer the calling of the Lord.

Father Neuhaus, iconic U.S. theologian, is dead at 72 - International Herald Tribune

Father Neuhaus, iconic U.S. theologian, is dead at 72 - International Herald Tribune:

"The Reverend Richard John Neuhaus, a theologian who transformed himself from a liberal Lutheran leader of the civil rights and anti-war struggles in the 1960s to a Roman Catholic beacon of the neoconservative movement of today, died on Thursday in New York. He was 72 and lived in Manhattan.

He learned he had cancer in November and recently developed a systemic infection that doctors say led to his death, said Joseph Bottum, editor of 'First Things: A Monthly Journal of Religion, Culture and Public Life,' of which Father Neuhaus was editor-in-chief. ..."

First Things is a web journal which I have read from time to time, and always found thought-provoking. While Father Neuhaus was not the only writer, his leadership was key to its success. I hope his successor is as effective as he. At present, the First Things website has some recent and older articles by Neuhaus on its front page.

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the Earth!

It's been a busy couple of weeks here in Missouri. Susan is on her annual trip to warmer climes to do pollinations for the winter research corn crop. This year it is Puerto Rico. She left December 26th and will return tomorrow evening. Puerto Rico has pretty good cell coverage, so we have been able to talk on a daily basis, and she has texted photos from time to time. One of these years I'm going to have to go down to PR with her and see some of these sights together.

A lot of my time was spent in providing attractive alternatives to the television, computer games, and general idleness for my boy, but I also had to work at my day job. I was able to take a couple days off so we could get out of the house and do something. So what would get a 16 year old boy out of the house when there are such attractive nuisances available? Well, a lot of it was target shooting at a public range north of town. I guess some might consider that an attractive nuisance, but it is one thing that he and I both enjoy, and he understands that when we are engaged in such activities there is no compromise with safety. It's a character builder.

My son went back to school on the 5th of January, and fortunately he is learning to get up and dressed without a whole lot of prodding. He is at the bus stop at 6:40am and since I am pretty much alone this week, I just go into work early, and, if possible, leave a little earlier. As a computer system administrator I work mostly during normal work hours, but when a crisis occurs at 4:59pm it has to be dealt with. Fortunately that is a rare occurrence.

I plan to take tomorrow off and make sure the house is tidied up for Susan's return -- after I sleep in for some much needed rest.

Well, anyway, Happy New Year to all, and I hope you experienced the blessings of Christmas. And I'll try and be a little more regular with the blog entries.

Life Has Changed...

For a little over a year now, my son has been eligible to obtain his learner's permit. I took him down to the local office of the license bureau and he picked up a manual, and I decided to let him make the next move.

Two months to the day after his 16th birthday he requested that I drive him to take his written examination. He passed, and he obtained his permit. He was surprised that it only cost $3.50. I reminded him that once he gets his driver's license there are insurance implications simply because he will be a male driver under the age of 26.

We have six months minimum until he can take the driving test, so he have time to reflect on the financial impact of his becoming a driver. Of course he wants a 2009 Ford F-150 4x4 pickup. I suggested a used Dodge Neon. He said he wouldn't be seen driving one of those. I said he wouldn't be seen driving at all. Life's tough when you lack your own wheels and a bank balance to support that habit.

I think we'll need to start looking for another vehicle, though. We have a 2002 Ford Escape, and a 2006 F-150 and both of them have standard transmissions. One thing that we need to think about is our own physical limitations. I am just emerging from a period of time when I underwent foot surgery and was hampered in my abilities to use the clutch pedal on the Escape (but not the F-150). Since I am closer to 60 than to 50, I may go with an automatic transmission the next time we buy a new car.

Oh well. Pray for patience -- We'll need it!

Whooping crane count in Texas up to record 270 | Top stories | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

Whooping crane count in Texas up to record 270 | Top stories | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle:

"LAMAR, Texas — The whooping crane population has set another record with 270 of the endangered birds wintering on the Texas Coastal Bend.

The birds in the world's only wild flock spend each winter in the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas before returning to Canada and the Wood Buffalo National Park.

Tom Stehn, whooping crane coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said the flock size is up four from last year. The worldwide population, which includes both wild and captive birds, stood at more than 500 in September. The low for the species was 15 in 1941. ..."

My earliest memories of the whooping crane were that the count was hovering around thirty. During the same time frame, the brown pelican was on the verge of extinction because DDT applications had weakened the shells of their eggs to the point where almost no young were being born.

The whooping crane and the brown pelican recoveries are two good examples of why environmental protection and mitigation are important.

Where is the Cyber Hymnal?

[UPDATE - 12/27/2008]
MB noted in the comments that the Cyber Hymnal is back. It's certainly good to see this important resource available again.

I ordinarily go to cyberhymnal.org to look up the words to hymns, but that domain name seems to have been taken over by a company that offers vacations, insurance, online dating, and so on. I wonder if someone forgot to pay the registration for the name?

That would be too bad, since they have been around since the mid 1990s providing an excellent reference for those interested in hymns and their history.

Merry Christmas 2008

From time to time I offer up a hymn for reflection, and today I present O Little Town of Bethlehem, written in 1868 by the Reverend Phillips Brooks, an Episcopal priest from Philadelphia. He was inspired by a trip he took in 1865 to Bethlehem. The words below are from Wikipedia, and the fourth verse is one I have never seen:

O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by;
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee to-night.

O morning stars, together
Proclaim the holy birth!
And praises sing to God the King,
And peace to men on earth.
For Christ is born of Mary,
And gathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love.

How silently, oh how silently,
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of his heaven.
No ear may hear his coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him, still
The dear Christ enters in.

Where children pure and happy
Pray to the blessed Child,
Where misery cries out to thee,
Son of the mother mild;
Where charity stands watching
And faith holds wide the door,
The dark night wakes, the glory breaks,
And Christmas comes once more.

O holy Child of Bethlehem!
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin and enter in,
Be born in us to-day.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel!

Year that could be turning point on disease - Times Online

Year that could be turning point on disease - Times Online:

"A tissue reprogramming technique that promises an almost limitless source of stem cells without the need to destroy embryos has been named as the breakthrough of the year by the prestigious journal Science.

The method for turning back the clock on adult tissue, so it acquires the versatile properties of embryonic stem cells, heads a list of ten achievements that also includes the direct observation of planets orbiting distant stars, and cheaper and faster technologies for mapping the genetic code.

The stem-cell advance, made by separate teams in Japan and the United States, has excited scientists because it could lead to tissue therapies for diseases such as Parkinson’s and diabetes grown from a patient’s own skin. ..."

With all the recent buzz that the new administration will roll back stem cell restrictions, it seems that new discoveries will reduce or even eliminate the need to resort to harvesting embryos for stem cells. No less a respected scientific journal than Science has named this the breakthrough of the year, and the advantages lie not only in eliminating one of the significant bioethical barriers to using stem cells, but also the fact that by using a patient's own cells, the problem of tissue rejection is greatly reduced.

Searching for the Star of Bethlehem | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

Searching for the Star of Bethlehem | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction:

"Using powerful computer software, an Australian astronomer says that he has re-created the night sky over Bethlehem in the year 2 B.C. and discovered a planetary conjunction that may have been the Star of Bethlehem that drew the Magi to worship the baby Jesus.

Astronomer Dave Reneke said the close proximity of Venus and Jupiter created a spectacle in the night sky just before the summer solstice that year. Britain's Telegraph newspaper reported that Reneke went so far as to suggest that perhaps Christmas should be celebrated on June 17 rather than December 25. An interesting idea, since the December Christmas celebration probably doesn't mark the true birth day of Jesus either. The December observance has its roots in a Roman celebration of the winter solstice."

Here is an interesting summary of various theories on what constituted the Star of Bethlehem. Since this was a physical phenomenon, it is certainly within the realm of science to propose possible explanations. Adding in historical references in the Gospels that constrain the actual year of the birth of Jesus to sometime before Herod the Great died in 4 B.C., there are a limited number of theories that actually fit the known facts. Read the full article for further information.

Majel Roddenberry, widow of 'Trek' creator, dies - Yahoo! News

Majel Roddenberry, widow of 'Trek' creator, dies - Yahoo! News:

"LOS ANGELES – Majel Barrett Roddenberry, 'Star Trek' creator Gene Roddenberry's widow who nurtured the legacy of the seminal science fiction TV series after his death, has died. She was 76. Roddenberry died of leukemia Thursday morning at her home in Bel-Air, said Sean Rossall, a family spokesman.

At Roddenberry's side were family friends and her son, Eugene Roddenberry Jr.

Roddenberry was involved in the 'Star Trek' universe for more than four decades. She played the dark-haired Number One in the original pilot but metamorphosed into the blond, miniskirted Nurse Christine Chapel in the original 1966-69 show. She had smaller roles in all five of its television successors and many of the 'Star Trek' movie incarnations, although she had little involvement in the productions. ..."

Majel Barrett (Roddenberry), while not a major actor in the Star Trek universe, was certainly a ubiquitous one. She was also the voice of the Enterprise's computer in most, if not all, the movies and television episodes.

Zimbabwe: The Nightmare Must End - TCS Daily

Zimbabwe: The Nightmare Must End - TCS Daily:

"It must end. Zimbabwe is a land devastated by disease, deprivation and despair. Once southern Africa's breadbasket, today it is a basket case. Robert Mugabe led the freedom movement against white minority rule. After coming to power in (1981) he was hailed by his people and neighbors as a liberator. But Mugabe's affection for privilege, position and power has driven him to cling to his presidency through brutal repression. ..."

Ambassador Richard Williamson, who is currently serving as a special envoy to Sudan gives us a sobering reminder that, even though Zimbabwe is off the front pages, the problems continue to mount in that country.

Politically correct Christmas carols censor 'king', 'son' and 'virgin' - Telegraph

Politically correct Christmas carols censor 'king', 'son' and 'virgin' - Telegraph:

"Enduring favourites such as Hark the Herald Angels Sing and God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen are being altered by clergy to make them more 'modern and inclusive'.

But churchgoers say there is no need to change the popular carols and complain that the result is a 'festive car crash' if not everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet. ..."

I appreciate the imagery in "festive car crash". In church Sunday we sang a lot of carols as part of the children's Christmas Pageant. Many, if not most of those singing had their hymnals open, but did not look at the words. At least not until they hit one of the "corrected" lines when they momentarily appeared disoriented as they sang the words they knew while some around them were singing unfamiliar words.

I think it needs to be emphasized again: Leave the existing hymns alone. If you don't like them, write new ones.

Shift Happens

As in "paradigm shift"...

Here is a YouTube presentation that puts a lot of things related to the information explosion into perspective:

Deep and wide: Growing via evangelism?

Deep and wide: Growing via evangelism?:

"STONY POINT, N.Y. — Mainline Protestant denominations have been shrinking for the past 40 years because they’ve scaled back what they did so well for decades before: birthing babies. Growth surged during the baby boom of the 1950s, but when that faded so did membership.

In order to reverse that trend the other historic way — growing the church through evangelization — about 75 Presbyterians gathered 30 miles northwest of New York City Nov. 10-12 for the “Grow the Church Deep and Wide: Evangelism Consultation” at Stony Point Center. ..."

"The proclamation of the Gospel for the salvation of humankind" may be the first of the six Great Ends of the Church, but it has been one that has caused discomfort in more than a couple of the Presbyterian churches I have joined over the years. Many years ago the church where I currently hold membership dropped the traditional 'Evangelism Committee' and replaced it with the 'Outreach Committee' for reasons that are somewhat unclear to me, although the consensus is that the 'E' word carried too much baggage.

Jack Haberer's article in The Outlook gives a bit of the history of the problem and how it is being met today.

Bad back may stop cane toad invasion | Science | Reuters

Bad back may stop cane toad invasion | Science | Reuters:

"SYDNEY (Reuters) - It seems a bad back might be the only thing that can stop the relentless spread of Australia's poisonous cane toads, which are killing native animals as they hop across the nation, researchers say.

Australia's army couldn't stop the cane toads, which number around 200 million. Residents swinging golf clubs failed and so did a campaign to freeze them to death in refrigerators. ..."

Golf clubs, eh? Would you employ a wood or a wedge for this? The possibilities do not make for pleasant contemplation.

It seems that Australia has had more than its share of environmental disasters resulting from inadvertent (in this case) or deliberate introductions of exotic species to a continent with its own unique catalogue of flora and fauna.

What good news there may be is that they seem to be suffering skeletal problems due to inbreeding. They may eventually die out, but not before inflicting a lot more damage.

Ottawa university boots cystic fibrosis from charity drive

Ottawa university boots cystic fibrosis from charity drive:

"OTTAWA -- The Carleton University Students' Association has voted to drop a cystic fibrosis charity as the beneficiary of its annual Shinearama fundraiser, supporting a motion that argued the disease is not 'inclusive' enough.

Cystic fibrosis 'has been recently revealed to only affect white people, and primarily men' said the motion read Monday night to student councillors, who voted almost unanimously in favour of it. ..."

There are some very useful links on the right sidebar of this article which demonstrate that the assumptions in the student council motion are false.

City wants her cent - The Sun Chronicle Online - News

City wants her cent - The Sun Chronicle Online - News:

"ATTLEBORO - A 74-year-old blind woman has been told a lien will be put on her South Attleboro home if she doesn't come up with a penny she owes on an outstanding utility bill. ...

The city sent Wilbur a letter dated Nov. 10 stating that if the 1 cent balance is not paid by Dec. 10, the city will assess a lien of up to $48 on Wilbur's next property tax bill. ..."

Only in Massachusetts...

Survey: Megachurches more intimate, believers less gullible

Survey: Megachurches more intimate, believers less gullible:

" ... “We all know that megachurches have all sorts of flaws. They’re big; they have a wonderful Sunday service because they can afford a symphony orchestra. But they’re kind of cold, they have … like, theater audiences,” said Baylor sociology professor Rodney Stark, the study’s lead researcher, noting common perceptions of megachurches. “All wrong.”

The survey found that members of such churches tended to have more friends within their congregations, hold more conservative Christian beliefs, share their faith with friends and strangers more often, and be involved in volunteer work more frequently than their counterparts in churches with less than 100 in average attendance. ..."

These conclusions, which seem counter-intuitive, make a little more sense if one notes that the things that draw people in to church -- doctrine, friendliness, sharing faith, volunteerism -- are likely to continue to characterize the congregation as it grows.

The Baylor University website has a more extended article on this study entitled Baylor Survey Finds New Perspectives On U.S. Religious Landscape.

Veteran's Day 2008

This short piece was written early this morning, but with the feature of delayed posting, it appears at the time of the official observance of Veteran's Day.

At 11:00am on November 11, 1918 the guns stopped firing in France as the armistice between the Allied forces and Germany took effect. This day was originally celebrated in the US as Armistice Day, but has been since designated as Veteran's Day. This day has also been historically known as Remembrance Day.

We remember with gratitude all those who served in our country's military. These men and women have kept secure what previous generations worked so hard to provide us. Their job has not always been appreciated, but the fact that we have the freedom to choose our President every four years without violence, stands as mute testimony to the job that our veterans have done over the last two hundred and thirty two years (counting from 1776).

If you have the opportunity today, thank a veteran.

Chocolates mark 500 years of Calvin in a taste of “paradise”

Chocolates mark 500 years of Calvin in a taste of “paradise”:

"(ENI) Swiss chocolatier Blaise Poyet believes he has captured the essence of the Protestant reformer Jean Calvin in special chocolate pralines he created to mark the 500th anniversary of the religious figure who made his mark on European history.

'It's not easy to represent theological ideas by using the taste buds,' acknowledges Poyet, a master chocolatier from Maison Poyet in Vevey, 50 miles from Geneva, where the French-born reformer lived and worked. 'But the key thing for Calvin is the glory of God, his excellence, his perfection. So we chose a chocolate that we chocolatiers find exceptional, rare, and flawless.'

The chocolates were unveiled in Geneva on November 2 after a ceremony to launch a year called 'calvin09' to mark the 500th anniversary in 2009 of Calvin's birth, along with other products and events intended to capture the life and spirit of Calvin."

OK. This is a bit much. Surely a better way to honor this historical personage could be found.

John Calvin is considered to the the "father" of Presbyterianism and the principles he proposed in his Institutes of the Christian Religion are still studied today. It isn't what I would call a "page turner", but for looking up particular topics it is great.

Maybe a better way to honor Calvin might be to learn more about him and what he taught. My opinions certainly mellowed once I stopped relying on "conventional wisdom" and actually started looking into what he actually said and did.

And if you feel the need to honor John Calvin with chocolate, at least choose plain dark chocolate -- it's cheaper and serves as an antioxidant.

Billy Graham Turns 90 | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

Billy Graham Turns 90 | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction:

"Billy Graham may be celebrating his 90th birthday today, but he's not done learning yet. The world-famous evangelist will use the Internet for the first time this week when he sends an e-mail reply to a supporter.

'We're helping him write it, but he's going to push the button,' said Graham's son Franklin, who has received more than 100,000 letters through the Internet to give to his father for his birthday. 'He was asking me the other day, 'How does it work?' And I said, 'I don't know, but I know it does.' '

Graham preached in person in more than 185 countries to over 215 million people during his more than 70 years of ministry. He prayed with every American President from Harry Truman to George W. Bush. ..."

Billy Graham's birthday was the November 7,so this is a little late. The full article has a lot of interesting information about his career and how he has interacted with many of the most powerful people in the world. Hopefully this giant in the evangelical world has a few more years left to serve on earth.

All Saints Day 2008

One of my favorite hymns for this season (and all seasons) is the rousing For All the Saints. In the Presbyterian tradition, six verses have been employed -- 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, and 11 of the ones shown below -- not even The Presbyterian Hymnal (1990) could not bring itself to totally "correct" its martial metaphors, instead tucking the offending verses out of the way. I have expressed the opinion before, and I do so again: Tinkering with hymns rarely improves the product, and this is no exception. Verses 9 and 10 are particularly meaningful, and do much to enhance the story being told. I have not seen verses 3, 4, or 5 in any hymnal.

William Walsham How wrote the words in 1864 and Ralph Vaughan Williams published the most familiar hymn tune in The English Hymnal (1906).

For all the saints, who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy Name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou wast their Rock, their Fortress and their Might;
Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true Light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

For the Apostles’ glorious company,
Who bearing forth the Cross o’er land and sea,
Shook all the mighty world, we sing to Thee:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

For the Evangelists, by whose blest word,
Like fourfold streams, the garden of the Lord,
Is fair and fruitful, be Thy Name adored.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

For Martyrs, who with rapture kindled eye,
Saw the bright crown descending from the sky,
And seeing, grasped it, Thee we glorify.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
All are one in Thee, for all are Thine.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O may Thy soldiers, faithful, true and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,
And win with them the victor’s crown of gold.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave, again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to faithful warriors comes their rest;
Sweet is the calm of paradise the blessed.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of glory passes on His way.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
And singing to Father, Son and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

We remember those who have gone before.

Hubble scores a perfect ten

Hubble scores a perfect ten:

"The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is back in business. Just a couple of days after the orbiting observatory was brought back online, Hubble aimed its prime working camera, the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2), at a particularly intriguing target, a pair of gravitationally interacting galaxies called Arp 147."

Good to see the Hubble Space Telescope back in business. Its contribution to not only our knowledge but our enjoyment has been immense.

Follow the link back to the article for a higher-resolution image of this astronomical feature.

Global Update - Polio Spreads to New Countries and Increases Where It’s Endemic - NYTimes.com

Global Update - Polio Spreads to New Countries and Increases Where It’s Endemic - NYTimes.com:

"Polio infections are increasing and spreading to new countries, according to case counts recently released by the World Health Organization.

Since April, outbreaks have been found in 10 countries beyond the 4 in which polio is considered endemic — Afghanistan, India, Nigeria and Pakistan. And in those four countries, the number of cases is more than double the number found by this time in 2007. ..."

This is a reminder that our complacency in the Western world regarding such diseases is a bit misplaced. I grew up having had both the Salk and the Sabin vaccines, and remember the relief I felt when all you needed to do was take a sugar cube with a drop of vaccine to gain immunity from polio. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world childhood diarrhea makes oral vaccines ineffective, thus making the injections necessary.

Youth Duck Hunt

My son and I got up at 4:00am on Saturday and drove down to Eagle Bluffs along the Missouri River in Boone County for the first day of the two day Youth Duck Hunt in our area of Missouri. My son turns 16 on October 30, so this was his last chance to do the youth hunt.

We had with us a friend of my son's and his father as well as another friend of mine who is a trout biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation, not to mention a waterfowl hunter of long experience.

My son was one of the last to draw for the choice hunting sites, but I think we ended up with the pick of the day. It was a little tough to walk into, and the slough we crossed had a mucky bottom, but we got set up and waited for 6:59am to roll around. We took the sound of shotguns all around as our cue, and the two boys went to work while the adults coached.

The teal were still in abundance, and the boys both took their limit (6). My son had 5 before the sun came over the horizon, and was in danger of getting his limit in the first half hour. The other boy was a little slower, but he caught up after sunrise. Both filled out their limit before 8:30am and we were off to breakfast (and the job of cleaning the catch once they got home).

The two young men were pumped, and if truth be told, their fathers were just as proud. The MDC biologist's son did his youth hunt a few years earlier and he welcomed the chance to help initiate more youth into the sport.

I have really appreciated the way hunting and shooting have worked in my boy's life, and the way we have been able to move our relationship into a different phase. In both hunting and trap competitions our kids, for the moment, are out there on an equal basis with the adults and are held to adult standards, and that has to be good for their development into adulthood. It certainly helps foster a sense of responsibility. And now he is an "adult" as far as the Missouri Department of Conservation is concerned because come this weekend he will have to buy a hunting license along with various options and Federal Duck Stamp.

Schooled by the Psalms | Christianity Today

Schooled by the Psalms | Christianity Today:

"...I came to pour out my heart to God and discovered there wasn't much to pour out. It would be years before I understood why I saw prayer in the same way I saw the Psalms at that time—only as a tool to help me ask God for what I wanted. The problem was that I wanted so little! What I didn't understand was that learning to pray was learning to desire the things God wants to give, and then asking him for them. ...

"Here is a good (and somewhat lengthy) piece by Ben Patterson, a campus pastor.

It is certainly appropriate for this Reformation Sunday, celebrating the 491st anniversary of Martin Luther's issuance of his Ninety-Five Theses. A listing of these debate points challenging the prevailing teachings of the Church can be found on Wikisource.

More Thoughts on "The Shack"

I have read a number of reviews of The Shack, and while most have been favorable (or at least tolerant), some have condemned this treatment of how God might reveal himself to a struggling person in this day. I want to address three of the criticisms I have read:

God is never described in the Bible using feminine imagery -- Not true. The Psalms in several places use the illustration of the Lord sheltering someone beneath his wings. This is a behavior usually associated with the female bird. See Psalms 17:8-9; 36:7; 57:1; 61:4; 63:7; 91:4. I'll admit that these are ambiguous, and the astute reader will note that I used the male possessive pronoun in relation to the Lord. That's just how I relate to God. But one only needs to go the the New Testament to see a clear and unambiguous reference to Jesus using feminine imagery to describe what he longed to do:

^{Mt 23:37} "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing."

God never appears to humans except in the form of the Son and no one can see the face of God and live -- Here Scripture can get pretty ambiguous. With whom did Abraham converse at his encampment near the trees of Mamre? (Genesis 18:1-33) The references go back and forth between three men and the Lord. The word translated as "Lord" is God's proper name, YHWH. In any event, the Lord spoke to Abraham, and Sarah overhead at least a part of the conversation (and found it amusing). In another part of Genesis, Jacob spends the night on the bank of the Jabbok river wrestling with "a man", who is identified in this story as being God. Jacob makes it clear what he saw:

^{Ge 32:30} So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

God no longer reveals himself except through Scripture -- This is a tough one. Of course God reveals himself though Scripture. This is a key and essential tenet of the reformed faith, and the most important source of my knowledge of who God is and what he requires of me. But I am personally convinced that the Lord works directly with individuals when it suits God to do so. But opening the door to ongoing revelation and epiphany also provides a lot of opportunity for mischief or even downright heresy. One one hand, a person who feels they have had a direct revelation from the Lord might decide that he or she has no need of Scripture or the instruction of spiritual leaders or the fellowship of other Christians. But on the other hand, to claim that God no longer interacts with people except through Scripture and the teachings of the Church denies the reality that many have experienced in their lives. Does God physically manifest himself to people today? I don't know for certain, but would not bother me if there were "road to Damascus" experiences today.

When I wrote my earlier comments about The Shack, I believed that it was a bit heterodox, but not heretical. I still hold that opinion. If I had a criticism of the book, it would be its harshness toward organized religion. I know first-hand how the "organized church" can be a support in trying times, and it is hard for me to imagine a world with no religion.

The Only Hope for Monsters | Christianity Today

The Only Hope for Monsters | Christianity Today:

"... Imagine my horror five years ago when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I realized that a real live thing had taken residence in my body—an 'alien' that was trying to kill me. Thankfully, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation brought a halt to the monster's plans. But as dreadful as that experience was, I've since come to believe that an even more malevolent creature grows unabated in my soul. ..."

Kay Warren writes a thoughtful account of her trip to Rwanda, where she expected to see and recognize those who were complicit in the genocide of 1994. She found instead people much like herself, facing the same day-to-day problems she faced in the US. They loved their families, worshipped the Lord -- and some, no doubt, were caught up in the wave of evil that took over Rwanda nearly 15 years ago.

She realized that she had to deal with the evil within before she could presume to judge the evil in another place. Only through seeking God's forgiveness and realizing that without Him we are without hope can we help provide hope to others who, like ourselves, are imprisoned by evil.

C.S. Lewis called it "the illusion of self-sufficiency" in The Problem of Pain. It is called "the sin of independence" in The Shack, which I recently read. These ideas both have to do with the danger of going it alone. When the pain within is unacknowledged and unaddressed, there is little that we can do about the pain around us, except perhaps to add to it.

But in allowing God to shepherd us though our pain, we can overcome its effects and become free to love each other as ourselves.

The Shack -- Initial Impressions

I had heard of The Shack a few months ago, but did not feel impelled to go out and buy it. A week ago a friend recommended it and I put it on my mental "to do" list. Friday I was at Barnes and Noble doing my regular browse-the-shelves thing, and I found myself walking past the religion books and saw the book. I pulled it from the shelf and added it to Susan's choice and began reading it at around 7:30pm Saturday evening. About 1:30am Sunday morning I read the last few lines, closed the book, and went to sleep.

The Shack proved to be a moving story and one I could not easily put off, once I reached a certain point. If you are looking for traditional theology explaining how a just God can allow evil, then this book will disappoint. If you are willing to let yourself view God in some non-traditional ways then give it a try.

In many ways, this is the Book of Job written for the 21st century. I saw a smattering of C.S. Lewis scattered here and there, but mostly this was an account of what might happen if a grief-paralyzed man had an opportunity to question God. There are twists and turns even up to the last page, but it was, for me, a moving account of how God might interact with even me.

One piece of theology expressed in this book (paraphrased) is in the protagonist's asking if all roads led to God. The answer was no, most roads lead nowhere -- but there are no roads that God would not take to reach those whom he loves. And that casts far wider a net than most of us can imagine.

PC(USA) - Presbyterian News Service - Cyberspace bloggers get 10 commandments

PC(USA) - Presbyterian News Service - Cyberspace bloggers get 10 commandments:

"LONDON — Christian Internet bloggers have received 10 commandments to help them avoid the danger of writing in haste what they might later regret at leisure.

Unlike the Ten Commandments of the Bible, the cyberspace injunctions have not been written on tablets of stone but on the Web site of Britain’s Evangelical Alliance.

Bloggers — writers of Internet diary and comment pages — are told not to murder someone else’s reputation, or steal their content. Nor should they give false testimony against another, commit adultery in their mind, or make an idol of their blog. ..."

Something to keep in mind, especially considering how easy it is to publish information these days. For better or for worse, we have an effect on the debates going on around us, and as Christians we have an even greater responsibility to, as we Presbyterians put it, "exhibit the Kingdom of Heaven to the world."

Ten Blogging Commandments is the name of the original article, and can be found by following the link. There is much more in the original article, and it worth considering.

White Sox take the AL Central

Well, thanks to the two games the Royals won in their final series with the Twins, the AL Central had to be decided in a playoff game last night between the White Sox and the Twins. I watched the first few innings before I turned my attention to other things. By that point it was obvious that it was a pitchers and defense game.

The Royals ended up being a key factor in the AL West with their excellent performance during September -- almost good enough to forget the rather poor showing in May, June, July, and August.

And they weren't at the bottom of the heap....

It's Primetime in Iran | Christianity Today

It's Primetime in Iran | Christianity Today:

"The TV studio hums just a few feet from his church office in northern California, but pastor Hormoz Shariat is still a last-minute arrival to his own show. Behind the scenes are teams of phone counselors and hip young producers.

Waiting behind an Islamic veil 7,000 miles away is an exploding house-church movement in Iran, whose compatriots eavesdrop on the illegal satellite programs produced daily by Pastor Shariat's Iranian Christian Church (ICC).

If there is a budding missional community of Muslim-background believers in America, it is the Iranians. These believers' passion is to reach Muslims worldwide, and they are being energized not by the now-grown children of the Islamic Revolution, but by their bicultural kids longing to discover their Persian roots. ..."

I hadn't really thought about what happened to the Iranians that found it necessary to become expatriates following the bloody revolution of the late 1970s.

This article is about a subset of those expatriates -- Christians -- and how they cope with maintaining their identity in a culture that is quite different than that in which they grew up. Along with that, this community is dealing with their children who are drawn to churches other than the ones their parents attend.

The Iranian Christians are also using video technology to help maintain ties with the congregations they left behind in Iran, which often need to operate clandestinely.

There is much in this story to ponder.

Royals End the Season With Dignity

Well, the 2008 baseball season is over for the Royals. They won their last series 2-1 and ended the season with a respectable .680 percentage for the month of September. They spoiled the division-leading Minnesota Twins' plans for a celebration, forcing them to await the White Sox make-up game that now holds the key to the AL Central.

The Royals' percentage for the season was .463, which is nothing to crow about, but considering the September record, demonstrates the rather poor performance over the summer. I sure hope we see some better playing in 2009. It has been a long time since the 1980s when the Royals were easy to cheer for.

Missionary Myths | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

Missionary Myths | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction:

"A team from two churches and one parachurch ministry has caught a vision for missions. Members travel regularly to Bangladesh to train pastors, minister to orphaned girls, and plant churches. The needs and opportunities in the South Asian nation of 153 million people, 99 percent of whom are Muslim or Hindu, are seemingly endless. According to the Operation World prayer guide, Christians there face discrimination from extremist Muslim groups. Compounding their difficulties is that despite the country's rapid economic growth, per-capita GDP stands at an anemic $1,300—or $3.56 a day.

When team members share their passion for Bangladesh with American Christians, they hear an all-too-typical response: 'We have enough poor people in our nation to take care of without you going to some other country.' In fact, many Westerners wonder whether we still need to send missionaries at all. ..."

Stan Guthrie does a good job of countering the various myths and misconceptions of carrying out mission in the world today. He makes the case that the Great Commission remains as compelling in the 21st century as it was to the original missionaries of the first century.

TheRidgefieldPress.com: First Congregational Church calls 20th minister in 295 years

TheRidgefieldPress.com: First Congregational Church calls 20th minister in 295 years:

"The First Congregational Church of Ridgefield has called the Rev. Dr. Charles Hambrick-Stowe as its new senior minister. Dr. Hambrick-Stowe will serve as only the 20th senior minister of Ridgefield’s oldest church.

The First Congregational Church was established in 1713, meeting in a small public house on the Green at the head of Branchville Road. ..."

It's interesting to contemplate all the history that this congregation passed through on its way to the 21st century.

It's a Little Late, Royals

I've noted with mixed feelings the fact that the Kansas City Royals have been doing much better than they did, in say, August when they were 7 for 27 or .259.

Thus far, in September, they are 13 for 20 or .650. Their last 10 games show 8 wins.

If they had played in May, June, July and August the way they're playing now, they'd be heading for the playoffs. (yes, I know the season began on March 31, but they actually did reasonably well leading off this season -- .444 for March and April)

Come on Royals -- we know you can do it!

Arrrrrrr -- I almost missed it!

Today is "Talk Like Pirate Day" and I nearly missed it...

It seems that the Cap'n told us we had to move from the promenade deck to the bilge for reasons that hardly make sense, but since when has that been a constraining factor at my place of employment? Actually the Cap'n was told by people above that the move had to take place today. We have been expecting it for a while, but as we looked at the progress of the renovations in the bilge -- errr -- basement, we didn't see it coming this week.

So given the choice between moving and walking the plank, I lost my cubicle with a real window (which I enjoyed for the last four years) and am now in a windowless basement room with a cubicle, no cell service, and my favorite classical radio station can't break through the concrete foundation. I am thankful for streaming audio and gigabit ethernet.

Well, I did a lot today, but not much in the way of fulfilling my job description....

Well, enough bellyaching. Time to belay the talk of mutiny and settle into the new crew quarters.

This is "bilge rat" signing off.

Congress's copyright fight puts open access science in peril: Page 1

Congress's copyright fight puts open access science in peril: Page 1:

"In recent years, scientific publishing has changed profoundly as the Internet simplified access to the scientific journals that once required a trip to a university library. That ease of access has caused many to question why commercial publishers are able to dictate the terms by which publicly funded research is made available to the public that paid for it.

Open access proponents won a big victory when Congress voted to compel the National Institutes of Health to set a policy of hosting copies of the text of all publications produced by research it funds, a policy that has taken effect this year. Now, it appears that the publishing industry may be trying to get Congress to introduce legislation that will reverse its earlier decision under the guise of strengthening copyright protections. ..."

As this article points out, the taxpayer pays not only for the research, but the publication costs -- yet is charged once again for reprints.

A researcher who publish the results of his or her research is often required to sign over the copyright to the publisher, thus losing the right to make copies of the paper for a class without paying a fee for offprints. The cost to a library for a journal subscription is pretty high as well. No wonder the publishers are fighting this new law (about a year old), and are trying to get it overturned or modified heavily in their financial favor.

The existing law was meant to make the results of research more available to the public and this would be a major step backward.

Weather Stuff

My sister texted me last evening and told me that my parents in Houston had their power back following the storm surge from Hurricane Ike. I had been able to talk with them the day before on their cell phone, but they were pretty much in the dark and without air conditioning.

Someone needs to remind me -- how did we live before cell phones came on the scene?

We have not been without our hurricane-related issues in Columbia. This past week we dealt with a Pacific storm system working its way east, and then the remnants of Ike curled their way up through Missouri. Saturday we had (depending on who's counting) up to 8 inches of rain, and over the past two days, we have soaked up the average yearly rainfall for our area.

We ended up with water in the basement, and when we went to get the portable sump pump, we found that squirrels had gnawed through the wire about two feet from the plug. So with a Walmart replacement plug we picked up late in the evening, we got it going on the sunken patio where several inches of water had accumulated. A couple hours later (early Sunday), the Ike remnants veered to the east and left Columbia dealing with the aftermath. And we are dealing with the odor from the the downstairs carpets. All-in-all, a trivial annoyance compared with what people in the direct path of the hurricanes have to deal with.

Barring Yahweh | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

Barring Yahweh | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction:

"Observant Jews have traditionally not used the name Yahweh, refusing to pronounce the so-called proper name of God out of respect, or to be sure they do not misuse it. Now neither will Roman Catholics, at least in their worship services.

'In recent years the practice has crept in of pronouncing the God of Israel's proper name,' said a June letter from the Vatican. 'As an expression of the infinite greatness and majesty of God, it was held to be unpronounceable and hence was replaced during the reading of sacred Scripture by means of the use of an alternate name: Adonai, which means 'Lord.'' In August, U.S. bishops were directed to remove Yahweh from songs and prayers.

Protestants should be following their lead, said Carol Bechtel, professor of Old Testament at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan. 'It's always left me baffled and perplexed and embarrassed that we sprinkle our hymns with that name,' she said. 'Whether or not there are Jewish brothers and sisters in earshot, the most obvious reason to avoid using the proper and more personal name of God in the Old Testament is simply respect for God.' ..."

An interesting theological dilemma...

Do we go with the familiarity that goes along with knowing God in the flesh, or do we keep our distance?

I have to admit that I have never been comfortable using "Yahweh" or "Jehovah" in conversation or prayer. But I haven't gone so far as some who abbreviate God as "G-d". I tend to use "Lord" (which is how the NIV generally denotes the Hebrew consonants YHWH), and I tend to use "Jesus" instead of "Christ."

Why -- Jesus became one of us, and it somehow somehow seems right to call him by his given name rather than his title. I am conflicted about how to refer to the Lord, though. Jesus called him "Abba" or "Daddy", but it is hard to imagine being on a first-name basis with the Creator. I admit it isn't quite rational, but it is the way I feel.

In any case, the reasons given by Carol Bechtel regarding causing offense to our Jewish brothers and sisters is reason ehough to exercise a little sensitivity to others.

September 11, 2001

In my capacity as lead roundtable commissioner for our Boy Scout district I wrote this as an opening for today's monthly meeting of adult leaders:

Good evening, and welcome to Roundtable.

It has been seven years to the day since the terrorist attacks against the World Trade Center and The Pentagon. Tuesday, September 11, 2001 was our regularly scheduled Roundtable at St. Andrews Lutheran Church, and the anniversary of those horrifying events falls once again on the day of Roundtable.

I think we were all in a state of shock, sadness, and anger that day and in the following days, but those of us who were Scout leaders soon remembered the importance of what we were called to do. We redoubled our efforts to be effective leaders as we provided a program that helped boys make the transition to manhood. This Scouting program has aims in three areas: character development, citizenship training, and physical and mental fitness.

The boys who were 11-17 years old in 2001 are now men ranging from 18-24. They are in college or beginning a career, or they may be starting a family. And some have taken the lessons they learned as Scouts and enlisted in the military.

Why would a young man choose such a path? We do not have a draft. They could stay in school, work at their jobs, or remain with their families – all valid choices – and the lessons they learned in Scouting would still serve them well.

But there are other lessons they learn as Scouts, and among them is that their freedom was purchased at a price paid by their forebears, and that to remain free also has its cost. Accordingly, some chose a path that is neither easy nor safe. They have helped provide humanitarian relief in natural disasters. They have provided logistical support for such scouting events as jamborees. They have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. And some have paid the ultimate price in service to freedom and their country.

Regardless of how we may feel as individuals about our country’s war on terrorism, we can all be united in our gratitude, respect, and admiration for the boys we saw grow into men over the past decade. And we can feel confident that whatever the circumstances that life dishes out to us, the boys who were in Boy Scouts are well-prepared to meet those challenges.

Scouting makes a difference!

Scientists start world's biggest physics experiment | Science | Reuters

Scientists start world's biggest physics experiment | Science | Reuters:

"GENEVA (Reuters) - International scientists celebrated the successful start of a huge particle-smashing machine on Wednesday aiming to recreate the conditions of the 'Big Bang' that created the universe.

Experiments using the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the biggest and most complex machine ever made, could revamp modern physics and unlock secrets about the universe and its origins. ..."

Well, we're still around. Unless the view from inside a black hole is the same as the real world...

Of course, this was just a one-way acceleration of protons. The fun stuff will take place in the weeks and months to come when they will actually "cross the beams."

Caesar's Sectarians | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

Caesar's Sectarians | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction:

"The state of Colorado wants to encourage religious people to get an education and participate fully in democracy. For example, it provides scholarships even to residents who want to attend a private religious college in the state. You can use them at the Jesuits' Regis University or the Methodists' University of Denver.

Then again, you can't use them at the Buddhists' Naropa University or at Colorado Christian University (CCU), a nondenominational evangelical school."
...
"In short, as Judge Michael McConnell wrote for the unanimous three-judge panel, "the Colorado exclusion expressly discriminates among religions, allowing aid to 'sectarian' but not 'pervasively sectarian' institutions, and it does so on the basis of criteria that entail intrusive governmental judgments regarding matters of religious belief and practice." ..."

Hmmm. It sounds like the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals is looking at not only the First Amendment Establishment Clause, but the Free Exercise Clause as well:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

The Colorado Legislature, reacting to a Supreme Court ruling, and set up six tests from distinguishing "sectarian" from "pervasively sectarian", and it was these tests that seemed to encroach on belief and practice.

I can think of at least one Presbyterian College in central Kansas that would have been denied scholarship money on the basis of this overturned law, and another Presbyterian College in central Missouri that would have been OK.
According to this Christianity Today editorial, the state of Colorado is not going to appeal.

Microsoft patents 'Page Up' and 'Page Down' - ZDNet.co.uk

Microsoft patents 'Page Up' and 'Page Down' - ZDNet.co.uk:

"Microsoft has been granted a patent on 'Page Up' and 'Page Down' keystrokes.

The software giant applied for the patent in 2005, and was granted it on 19 August. US patent number 7,415,666 describes 'a method and system in a document viewer for scrolling a substantially exact increment in a document, such as one page, regardless of whether the zoom is such that some, all or one page is currently being viewed'. ..."

This can be placed in the "you've gotta be kidding" file. ZDNET thoughtfully provided a link in their article to the actual patent (see above).

A Fun Weekend...

Every year the Boy Scout troop at my church goes on a campout called "Aqua Bumming". We stay for two days in cabins down at the Lake of the Ozarks, and run 50-60 boys through a variety of waterfront skills, including canoeing, sailing, rowing, swimming, fishing, and fly fishing.

A fellow scout leader and I taught seven boys who learned knots, how to tie flies, casting, and a variety of other skills that go into fishing with artificial flies. Then we went down to the lake shore and turned the boys loose with rods and reels graciously supplied by the Mid-Missouri Chapter of Trout Unlimited (both of us are also members of these organizations).

Starting off with the flies they tied themselves, the boys cast off the shore and some of them waded up to their waists. It was a good day for novice casters -- no wind to speak of and no one got into major difficulties with snags or knotted leaders. The major problems were the wakes from the powerboats that went by on regular intervals as well as the fact that we really weren't fishing in good habitat.

In spite of all that, four of the boys caught bluegill on the flies they tied themselves. Most of the boys had caught fish before on bait and spincast rods, but catching a fish with a fly rod was definitely a thrill for them, and doubly so because it was on a fly they tied themselves.

We'll be taking the boys to a farm pond near Columbia to finish the merit badge. The fish there don't get a lot of angling pressure, so they should get a chance to catch both bluegill and bass on a fly rod.

Busted! By My Own Mother....

Mea culpa.

I got a call on my cell phone today from my mother in Houston wanting to know if I was OK. It seems like she noticed a drop-off in blogging over the past week and she was concerned that I was feeling under the weather.

I assured her that I was feeling just fine, and that I really didn't have much to say.

Her response: "That doesn't seem to stop other bloggers from blogging..."

Actually, I started a posting a few days ago and deleted it before I hit the "publish" button. It concerned a 17 year old girl who was, in turn, accused of having a child 4 months ago and having her mother claim it as her own. When that was shown to be demonstrably false, it then turned out that she was, indeed, 5 months pregnant, and the press had a field day. A 17 year old girl who had been facing the consequences of her choices in the context of a loving family and small community was now a nationwide object of scorn and ridicule. This speaks most eloquently regarding the character of those in the media and political realm who feel a young girl is expendable when there is an election to be won. And people wonder why I dread years evenly divisible by 4....

OK. I got that off my chest.

And I hope this is the last time I stick my nose into the stench of politics.